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Soren's Budget Single-Seater Crawler


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And the spaghetti saga continues. Have now added another 3 lengths of tube top this thing, making it a total of 5 lengths or 30meters! It's incredible the amount of steel that goes into such a small car. Can't even begin to imagine how much goes into a big Rock Bouncer :o

Anyways got the roof done yesterday and today all of the backend was done up. Decided to get a little creative with the rear just to give it some personality. Took forever to make that single BullHorn shaped tube :D

Hope the pictures are self-explanatory, if not, just ask :)

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Update time!

Well actually I have some bad news, my Migatronic welder gave up on me monday. The rectifier, and sadly the new one didn't get to me before the start of the weekend. And as you can imagine, without a welder there isn't much I can do to this thing!

But, dragged out my old man's fluxcore welder in hope of atleast being able to tack something together. But actually it does quite well! So it allows me to not just barely tack stuff into place, but also weld enough so that I can burn parts that'll be hard to get to afterwards, properly in.

So with that news I began fitting shocks. Due to budget I decided to not use DII shocks, and use what I have instead. So in the front it's Monroe Gas from the front of a Series, and ind the back it'll be my Koni's from the back of the JWH :)

Bracketry is kept really simple and just like on a Series with a big single shear bolt that goes through the chassis (in this case welded to the chassis) and a spacer:

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And the rear is coming along too, just needs some more structure :)

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Oh and I have a couple of film clips for you too! A walkaround:

And a little run in it (without shocks)

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Today the rear shock mounts were finished, bar the last welding when I get the Migatronic up and running again:

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This last picture shows actually how good that fluxcore welder is, plenty penetration and adequate heat. Especially when you consider it only costs 100£. So would be plenty fine for most small time DIY fixes.

In the afternoon I fitted and old Series Deluxe bonnet I had floating around behind the workshop, with rusted frame and a couple of big dents it was in great condition to be attacked by the grinder :D made it front-flip and now just need to make a stay for it. I know the visible hinge in the front looks hideous, but it isn't any beauty contest, and it was what I had. Besides when it gets painted black it won't be as obvious. I could also run a strip of rubber over it, would also protect it a bit from the mud:

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Though I was genuinely impressed with my Dad's little welder, it sure was nice to get the Migatronic up and running again! A new Rectifier and she's ready for another twenty years! (hopefully)

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This meant I could begin finishing the welds on the rear, And got about 75% done before I decided to call it a day. I hate leaving things just tacked, the joins corrode (because of bad storage, I know) and I don't particular enjoy welding, and especially not for a whole day. So I'd rather finish everything little by little :)

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yeah well nothing to brag about though, its just fast spot welding because the gap was about 1,5mm, and the tube is notched to a point, I can't just keep at it or the puddle will sink and become hollow. So with some fast spot welding, still keeping it red-hot, I can better control the heat. With a Tig welder and a pedal this would be much easier to control. But I haven't got such toys :)

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"See the light"!

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The tail lights are only going to be brakelights, no need for ay others lights really, just thought that a couple of big LED work lights in the front would be nice for miving it around in the winter time, and it looks kinda cool too behind the grille, a bit early S1 ish :D

Also got the bonnet-prop sorted, this thing won't fall on your head:

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Have really lacked motivation this weekend, so progress isn't much. But it's okay, you can't spend every bit of time on one project, you'll just end up hating it. (trust me, been there)

But did get a bit done, namely instrument cluster mounting. The two gauges are only for illustrative purposes, will be a watertemp and probably a boost gauge, just for laughs. And a couple of other items will be fitted at final assembly; a starter button, a charge light and an oil pressure light.

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It is offset to the right so that I don't hit it with my knee when getting in.

Also had it outdoors in some real Scandinavian weather :( had hoped for a little blast down the field to feel the shocks, but didn't wan't to get it all messy:

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Found a niece bit of tubing in the scrap bin at work, and had just the job for it, some triangles:

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Seeing as I have cheated and made a joint at what would be the windshield bar and bulkhead bar, I felt like I had to add a little extra there, and so a little triangle was made. In the engine cage its simply so that it doesn't bend up on me if (when) I roll, will sneak some in on the front as well, but space is sadly limited

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You leaving as a single triangle in the door openings, or putting one up to the 'bulkhead bar'? Would increase strength massively, and stop the bulkhead moving backward in the event of a head-on collision, or landing on your nose!

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Well spotted Bowie! and yes I would've loved to more strengthening in that area, but the thing is that it is already quite a hassle to get in and out of because of the low roof line (relative to the floor) so I tried clamping a bit of tube on there, but it was a neck and leg braking experience getting in and out. So don't really know what else to do? But I doubt it'll ever be a problem as it is already a great deal stronger than any factory 4x4 and the low speeds that this thing goes at really lessens the risk. But of course it is always there..

Added the front two triangles:

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OK, what about fitting a triangular 'door' which is securely fixed with industrial type hinges to the bulkhead, and a good clasp on the other end?

You could even hinge it along the triangle, so it stays out the way if you need to keep hopping in and out, and you fold it when you go 'extreme'...?

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Front bumper time:

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Made entirely out of an old military tow-bar. Cut out a piece in the middle, bent it and welded it on top :) Provides two great strong eyes for shackles.

And the second picture illustrates the distance to the grille, this is as close as I could get as the engine cage has to move forward to get off.

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OK, what about fitting a triangular 'door' which is securely fixed with industrial type hinges to the bulkhead, and a good clasp on the other end?

You could even hinge it along the triangle, so it stays out the way if you need to keep hopping in and out, and you fold it when you go 'extreme'...?

Long ago we were talking about something similar, have a clevis type affair as a hinge for a triangle door and have one of these as the latch with a pair of pins in it. Thinking was it wasn't going to burst open and if it did take a tumble it would distort with the rest of the frame.

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Never going to be as strong as a tube, but an idea?

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I like that soren! Looks like it has a proper face now, maybe a halibut, or a trout ;):)

haha yeah it actually does kinda look like a fish :D

Long ago we were talking about something similar, have a clevis type affair as a hinge for a triangle door and have one of these as the latch with a pair of pins in it. Thinking was it wasn't going to burst open and if it did take a tumble it would distort with the rest of the frame.

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Never going to be as strong as a tube, but an idea?

Thanks for the input :) But I have been putting a bit more thought into it and I really think that making a door or bar that has to fit that perfectly would be a right pain, even the smallest distortion would render it useless, either impossible to open or dangling because you can't close it. And those tube-clamp things really require a perfect fit (which obviously it what makes them strong in the first place) So I don't know I really don't think it'll be a problem, at worst it'll distort a large part of the cage, I really doubt it would fail to a degree where it would be a safety issue. Remember that the tube I'm using is 4mm wall and it is really tough to bend.

Time for a little update. Was finally ready to make the final cuts in the engine cage so that it can be separated from the rest of the buggy:

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Made a tube on the lathe that was a snug fit into the cage tube, and plug welded it to the chassis side cage:

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Should be plenty strong for just an engine cage, it takes quite a bit to snap two 10mm bolts each side.

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